CEREBRAL MALARIA CLAIMS LIFE OF TEN YEAR OLD

Cerebral Malaria very suddenly claimed the life of ten year old Christopher Cherry on August 25. Christopher is the son of missionaries Eric and Martha (Kauffman) Cherry, serving with Grace Fellowship & Missions in Karimama, Benin, French West Africa, just south of the Niger boarder. Family and friends buried Christopher in the mission compound the day following his death. In addition to his parents, his three sisters Marissa, Carolyn and Bethany miss him greatly. MAX member, Stefan Cherry, a brother and church planter in Ottawa, with extensive service experience in Africa, is currently in Benin to support the family, traveling with the assistance of a Mutual Aid Ministries Share Fund grant. Stefan has assisted his brother in building a head stone, imbedded with a grave marker plaque he brought from Ottawa (see photo). They are also working on completing the building of a house which the family hopes to move into early in the New Year. In an October 26 email from Benin, Stefan writes, "Although the tears are still fresh and Eric, Martha and the girls are still feeling raw, I am amazed at how much God's grace and the prayers of God's people have been sustaining them through this very hard time of grief. Thank you once again for the generous support from MAX Canada, and for sending out prayer requests. We appreciate it a great deal."

• Pray for the Cherry family as they deal with this very tragic and sudden loss of their son. Pray for healing and restored wholeness for Eric and Martha.
• Pray for Stefan's wife Pascale and their two pre-school children (3 and 1) who have remained in Ottawa.
• Pray for Stefan's travel safety during his visit to Benin from October 14-30.

FARMING ACCIDENT CLAIMS LIFE

We invite the prayers of our readers on behalf of the family of sixty year-old Merlin Yoder of the Pigeon, Michigan area. On the morning of Friday, October 21, Merlin was oiling the chains on his combine, following all safety precautions, when his right arm was caught in a shaft. A farmer going by on the road noticed the combine belts smoking, stopped and called 911. Merlin was airlifted to a Saginaw Hospital. In spite of the best efforts of medical staff, Merlin passed away very early on Monday. The Funeral was held on Thursday, October 27 at the Pigeon River Mennonite Church where the Yoder family are members. Merlin leaves behind a number of siblings, his wife Patricia and two adult children Sharri Kraig and Michael, as well as a grandson. An avid cyclist, Merlin recently did a 100 mile bike trip around the thumb of Michigan and had dreams of participating in the Rosedale Mennonite Missions annual Ride for Missions in which several of his siblings have participated. A posting of October 24th on www.carepages.com/carepages/bayportroad says it well for the family, "Looking back over the past 3 days, it's been quite a journey. We were shocked by the initial news. We hoped. We cried. We prayed. We waited. We received grim news. We cried. We sang. We said goodbye."

• Pray for God's healing for the Yoder family and the surrounding community as they grieve the loss of a very special person.

UPDATE

Greg Reddekopp: We are delighted to report that Greg Reddekopp (March, June, & August, 2011) is now out of the hospital, after almost two months in critical care. Greg is the 34 year old husband of Amy, and father of Ellie (10), Khaya (9), Kenya (7) and Ethan (5). Six years ago, while working in South Africa he got sick and the family came back to Canada. Since that time, Greg has suffered with daily pain due to chronic pancreatitus. "We have some good news," wrote his wife Amy on October 19. "All of Greg's symptoms are perfectly normal for a survivor of necrotizing pancreatitus." Symptoms will continue for another year or two but will be monitored with regular CT scans. The Redekopp family continues to post regular blogs at www.caringbridge.org/visit/gregreddekopp. On October 25, Greg wrote, "What a blessing it has been to be home during the month of October. I got a chance to see two of my kids get baptized (Khaya and Kenya) and was able to celebrate with my daughter Ellie who turned 11. I also celebrated my 34th birthday last week."

• Please continue to pray for this family and for Greg's continued healing.